Without another word, he hoisted Kade over his shoulder and climbed out.
The flames on the wing had already been smothered by fire-resistant foam. Once he cleared the hatch with Kade, the crew turned their hoses on the cabin.
As Steve set Kade down away from the smoke, he eyed the medic working on Nia.
“She seems fine,” the medic said. “Just knocked out.”
He’d barely nodded in response when Fury’s voice sounded. “Stark made it official. That thing’s part of a gem. We’ve got one of those ideas that’ll either stop it or blow us all up.”
“It’s a shard, not a rod,” Stark said. “I’m hoping the right frequency from the disruptor might do what our tennis match failed to accomplish—you know, disrupt the structure, return it to its original shape, and maybe even keep it from powering the Sleepers.”
“On my way.”
As Rogers turned to move, a coughing Kade grabbed him, his grip surprisingly strong. The look in his eyes was desperate. “You can’t be out here!”
Under other circumstances, he’d stop to listen, but the sphere had already settled into the repaired cube’s hollow center. Now, at the behest of the purple beams, the triangular Sleeper was folding and unfolding itself, as if being examined for flaws by an expert repairman.
Once the Sleepers assembled, they would come for him.
He pulled away. “Sorry, doctor, I have to go.”
At his back, he heard Kade argue with the paramedics. “Schmidt! I have to check on Schmidt. Let me go!”
Not a bad idea. He only hoped the doctor wouldn’t get himself killed in the process.
“DR. N’TOMO?”
The darkness was so complete, any sense of the time that had passed between the crash and Nia’s waking had utterly vanished. One moment she was pressed forward, the heavy seat restraints digging horribly into her waist and shoulders. The next, she was on her back in the basalt cavern, trying to figure out who was calling her name.
“Dr. N’Tomo?”
The voice mingled with the slushing hiss of fire-retardant foam as it was hosed into the wreck and a strange, pained energy hum that echoed throughout the volcanic cavern. Unless she’d become telepathic, it didn’t belong to the hovering medic. Her lips weren’t moving.
“Dr. N’Tomo? It’s Agent Velez, can you hear me?”
She was speaking through the comm. Nia tried to answer, but her voice came out muffled. Realizing she was wearing an oxygen mask, she sat up and pulled it off. The medic tried to put it back on, but she waved her away.
“Yes? I’m here.”
“Glad you’re still with us. I tried to reach the director, but he’s emergency access only, and this has nothing to do with his immediate concerns.”
“What’s going on?”
“I did that checking you requested.”
Nia turned away from the emergency workers and cupped her hand over her ear. “And?”
“I sent the video to your PDA. It should be there now.”
Nia pulled the device from her side. The screen, cracked but still functioning, displayed an overhead view of a small African village. For a satellite image, the clarity was startling. She could make out the straw thatching on the huts and the human forms set out along the dirt, many covered in sheets.
Velez talked her through. “Sierra Leone, 2004. You’ll see a figure come in from the right wearing a hazmat suit and carrying a flamethrower. That’s Dr. Kade. I tracked him from the CDC base camp.”
He moved slowly through the village, a long stream of red and yellow sweeping in front of him. Liquid fire. The straw on the thatched roof turned white, curled, and blackened.
Nia’s mind shot to the most plausible explanation. “In remote areas, burning infected corpses isn’t unusual. It controls the spread. Nearly half the mothers in a Liberian village died because it was their role to handle the dead.”
Velez, aching to get to the point, stopped her. “I know. I’m going to zoom in. The next part’s harder to make out, but I’ve marked the area I want you to focus on. Tell me what you see.”
As the screen honed in on the figures, the image grew pixelated, blurring the distinction between flame, smoke, and body. A highlighted rectangle helped her make out the forms. Save Kade, all the figures were burning—but while some were motionless, others twisted in the flames. She assumed it was the result of the heat, like the crumple and curl of burning paper.
But then she realized it wasn’t.
“It’s not just the dead he’s burning. It’s the living.”
27
IF I SURVIVE, I MAY SEE THEIR LIKE AGAIN.
BRUISED from the crash, rib still hurting from his brush with Fury, Dr. Kade found standing difficult. At least he didn’t seem to have any open wounds. Ignoring the medics, he stumbled toward the containment facility. Since discovering the virus, everything that had happened had only born out his darkest fears. And now, for the second time, their “isolated” base was under assault. He’d already wasted enough time pretending the others’ opinions had substance, that there might be some merit to their reasonless reasons.
There was only one certain solution: The Skull and Captain America had to die, and their bodies had to be incinerated. He prayed the Sleepers would handle Rogers, but he’d have to deal with the Skull himself.
Following the incursion protocols he and Dr. N’Tomo had hastily compiled, non-essential personnel were being evacuated to the new bunkers. That left one guard at the changing-room entrance—a square-jawed, sandy-haired man in a hazmat suit whose name Kade had no wish to learn.
His voice thin to begin with, the rod’s loud energy hum forced him to scream. “Let me pass!”
He received a curt head shake. “Too dangerous. The seal can’t be guaranteed. You should head to the bunkers with the others until there’s an all-clear. Wish I was there myself.”
He shook his fists. “It’s because the seals might fail that I must secure the patient!”
“No can do.”
This latest fool was no more than a boy, a child who happened to be holding an automatic weapon and blocking his way.
“I carry the full authority of the CDC! Let me in before it’s too late!”
“The way I understand it, the orders I’m following are based on your protocols, sir.”
Someone else might have been able to play on the agent’s uncertainty, manipulate their way in, but Kade knew himself well enough to realize he didn’t have the patience. He had only one trick he could try. He went to his knees, wailing.
“You must! You must!”
The agent’s face twisted in a mix of confusion, annoyance, and sympathy. Moving his weapon so it hung to his side, he freed his gloved hand to place on Kade’s shoulder.
“You okay, doctor? Take some slow breaths. It’s crazy out here, I know. The hover-fliers are all down, so we’re stuck for the duration, but I’ll call someone to escort you to the bunkers.”
The moment he came close enough, Kade grabbed the gun. He flipped the safety, pointed the barrel into the agent’s side, and fired. The rod’s humming muted the crack, but he felt the gun’s vibrations in his hand and arm.
Refusing to look at the agent’s face, he pushed the wounded man against the foundation and headed inside. There, he located the three syringes that had been prepared for the Skull’s execution and selected one. While it was meant to be used in conjunction with the other two—one an anesthetic, the other intended to cause respiratory arrest—this would be enough to stop his heart within an hour, even with the resistance of his enhanced body. If he could pretend it was some kind of cure, the Skull might willingly allow himself to be injected.
The fog of war would give Kade some time before the missing guard was noticed, but how much? He was wearing the membrane. Was there time to put on the hazmat suit?
Yes? No?
The dressing room was windowless. The whines and rushes outside told him nothing. Practically hyperventilating from anxiety, he fumbled
to activate the security monitors, hoping for more information.
The sphere had fitted itself into the cube’s center. The triangle was folding and unfolding itself, moving like a strange caterpillar toward its intended destination. As he expected, Rogers was in the thick of things, valiantly adjusting the disruptor controls. The rest of the agents were counting heads and herding personnel into the bunkers.
Kade wasn’t some grunt. Even in the confusion, they’d realize he wasn’t among them soon. No, then. He’d have to trust the membrane. Once he was done, he could strip, burn his clothes, and sterilize himself in the showers. For now, he paused only to remove the watch his parents had given him the day he received his medical degree. He sealed it in a plastic bag before passing into the corridor.
As warning lights flashed, one door sealed shut and the other opened. A question came to mind he’d asked himself many times: If he was infected, would he have the strength to treat himself the same way he would anyone else? In the past, it was a more complicated issue. Killing himself might also destroy the best hope at a cure. But this time there was no cure.
So…what would he do? Suicide?
No point confronting it now. Every step he took involved deep uncertainties; his success was far from assured. The only reasonable way to deal with things would be as they occurred.
He entered the anteroom, not at all surprised to find the weakened Skull on his knees. Schmidt was bent forward, crimson forehead pressed to the floor, eyes closed. The virus’s spread would, of course, cause excruciating pain. Normally, the brain would go unconscious at some point, to protect itself. But from what Kade was able to predict about its effects, this virus prevented even that small mercy.
The only surprise was the hideous grin on the man’s face.
That made no sense. It rattled him, but not enough to slow his movement toward the controls. The clicks and beeps as he adjusted the settings must have been audible inside the chamber, because the Skull opened his yellowed eyes and peered at Kade.
His voice came over the speakers, quieter than it had been, but steady and disciplined.
“Herr Doktor, where is your suit?”
Stupid. Without a suit, the Skull would know something was up. He’d never accept the injection.
He had another idea, one that would also solve the issue of how to incinerate the body. In a way, it was inspired by Fury’s ridiculous effort. But rather than deprive the Skull of oxygen, Kade could saturate the cell with it. Once the atmosphere within the sealed space was rich enough, a single spark from the disintegrator they used for sterilization would create a massive fireball.
More efficient than a flamethrower, it would even take out the wounded guard. Regrettable—but if Kade managed to be far enough away when the blast occurred, it might be blamed on equipment failure.
After a few moments, the oxygen began to invigorate the Skull. He got to his feet and tapped the glass to get Kade’s attention.
“You plan to kill me, to prevent the spread of the disease I carry?”
Kade didn’t turn to face him, but nodded.
“The explosion will be quite large. You’ll kill yourself, too?”
Kade shook his head. “I can trigger the incinerator remotely.”
From the corner of his eye, he saw Schmidt press against the glass—half to support himself, half to better observe. “I admire your agency. Freedom lovers are so often bedeviled by what your Emerson called a foolish consistency, the hobgoblin of small minds. What others mistake for ethical absolutes are at best guidelines, ja? Why take risks over…paperwork?”
A loud thrumming joined the cacophony outside. Kade glanced at the monitor on his PDA. Rogers was firing the disruptor. The movement of the triangle slowed, but did not stop.
Kade checked the oxygen levels. The gauge was moving up, but slowly. He sighed.
“What is it, doctor? More difficult than you thought to take a human life?”
Nothing left to do now but wait. “No, not at all. I have to wait until the oxygen content reaches saturation level.”
“Ah. The eternal struggle of will against substance. I do admit I find it…disappointing that in the end, I am to be defeated as a matter of expedience.”
“Some might call it just. Isn’t that how you treated the inhabitants of the concentration camps?”
“You should read your files more carefully. I did not participate in the Final Solution.”
“Wasn’t that the defense of every Nazi war criminal?”
“Oh, I was aware of the camps from the onset. I approved, and my efforts certainly aided and abetted what happened there. But to be accurate, I did not participate directly, and so could not be said to have treated the inhabitants any particular way at all.” Seeing Kade’s diffident expression, the Skull smiled as if he’d found a like mind. “I can tell you’ve done this sort of thing before. Do you consider yourself cruel?”
Kade’s face twitched. “No. Not intentionally.”
He looked at the monitors again. The disruptor beam thickened to no avail. The triangle was now completely in place.
“Would you be willing to prove that by affording a dying man a last glimpse at what goes on beyond his prison walls?”
Kade made a face. “You expect me to believe you don’t know?”
“My guesses are educated, but still guesses.”
“Given your role in all this, I think it’s best we keep it that way.”
A loud crackling turned Kade back to the screen. The disruptor, apparently having exceeded its ability, no longer fired at all. The din from the humming rays ceased. The rod turned vertically, then slipped down among the assembled pieces, locking them in place. The triangle fanned out, forming limbs that raised the whole like some horrid spider.
A recorded voice bellowed through the cavern, audible even through the containment walls: “Und jetzt wird die welt sehen Kapitän Amerika sterben durch die hand der Führer.”
Kade expected the assembled robot to attack—the sooner the better—but it didn’t move. Instead it only repeated:
“Und jetzt wird die welt sehen Kapitän Amerika sterben durch die hand der Führer.”
Seeing Kade’s confusion, the Skull translated. “And now the world will see Captain America die at the hands of the Führer. My former leader had a useful penchant for melodrama. While it may be hard to believe today, this was considered cutting-edge propaganda at the time.”
The disruptor no longer working, Rogers hurled his shield at the Sleepers again and again. It didn’t react. Perplexed, Kade didn’t care that the Skull had shifted position so he could see the screen.
“Why isn’t it attacking? Why isn’t it trying to kill him?”
“That much I do know. It can’t, not without an occupant.” The Skull wavered on his feet. “I am feeling very giddy from all the oxygen. Is it time yet, Herr Doktor?”
Kade’s brow furrowed. “That was your plan? You were going to use it to kill Captain America?”
The oddest half smile played across his thin lips. “ Ja. And here it is, only 100 yards away, the only obstacle these walls…and you.” He narrowed his gaze. “You have a rare opportunity, doctor. Release me, and I will make you rich beyond your wildest dreams.”
“Do you take me for one of those fools? Any value money has would die with humanity.”
Schmidt shrugged weakly. “The world having no shortage of fools, it’s usually worthwhile to assume that I’m dealing with one. But you are right, of course. So strange to have gotten this far, only to…”
His legs fell out from under him. He crumpled to the floor, twitching. The momentary sense of health had faded, the pain returning. He was now showing symptoms of oxygen toxicity.
The flashing red gauges indicated the saturation level had been reached. All Kade had to do now was leave and use the remote to trigger the disintegrator. Any further delay would not only be risky, it would also, in effect, be torturing the man.
And he did not consider himself cruel.
At the same time, a nagging thought held him back. The safest course was to destroy Rogers, as well. Outside was a powerful device designed to do just that. Might there be a way to solve both issues at once?
There was, but it would mean more than the death of two men. It would mean the death of everyone at the base, including Kade himself. This was it, then—no mere abstraction, but a moment of decision.
He leaned closer to the kneeling figure. “That machine, can anyone use it?”
The Skull’s eyelids fluttered. “Nein…”
His accent was growing thicker.
“Its weaponry…can it still create a thermal blast?”
“Ja.”
Kade swallowed. “I have a proposition.”
Schmidt’s breaths grew shorter. “Vell zenn, I suggest you make it quickly.”
“I can’t let you live—you see that, don’t you? But perhaps there’s a way you can still have your final battle.”
His crimson skin was so tight to the bone, the Skull’s brow only appeared when it furrowed. “Why…?” As he caught on, his brow smoothed back into the dome. “Of course. Rogers also has the virus. You want him eliminated as well, and I can kill him for you. But what about the fact that releasing me runs the risk of releasing the virus?”
“They’re evacuating everyone to the sealed bunkers. I’m wearing a membrane. If you put it on, it will help contain the virus in your body.”
“But once Rogers is dead, what would prevent me from using the Sleepers to escape?”
Kade held up the syringe. “This. It will stop your heart within one hour. Agree to take it, I’ll release you, and you can use that thing out there to destroy Captain Rogers. You’re dying anyway. Do we have a deal?”
The Skull laughed. “Ja. We have a deal.”
Kade slapped the controls, lowering the oxygen levels.
Schmidt rolled down his sleeve. “They’ll be looking for you. You’d better hurry and get in here so you can inject me.”
“Oh, I’m not going to administer the injection.” He passed the needle into the transfer station. “You’re going to do it yourself.”
Marvel Novels--Captain America Page 19
